ENRICHMENT By Nancy Steinke
What does that mean? We hear the word tossed around, but what does it mean to people that keep animals? We may nod our heads knowingly and say ‘Enrichment, sure, I do Enrichment. Just the other day, I fed my horse (goat, bird, lizard, etc) something different than their regular food. That’s Enrichment, right?’ Well, yes it is, but there is so much more that can be called Enrichment. Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines it as: “...to make richer, to improve the quality of something, to make something better, to improve the usefulness or quality of something by adding something to it. Hmm, The Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute has this to say: “... Environmental Enrichment is the process of providing stimulating environments for zoo (confined) animals in order for them to demonstrate their species typical behavior, to allow them to exercise control or choice over their environment, and to enhance their well being.” Whew! Sounds a little daunting, doesn’t it? It’s not. Truly not if you as the person keeping the animal use a little creativity and common sense to make it happen. It doesn’t have to be expensive, in fact, it doesn’t have to add any cost to what you already do. When we speak of Enrichment, what we are saying is that it is up to us, as caretakers to provide opportunity for the animal to stimulate its mind and body in ways that it would not if just left to its own devices hanging about in its cage waiting to be fed.
Here are a few examples of, and opportunities for Enrichment that anyone can provide and can be used for many differing types of critters.
HOUSING:
Use different levels for the flooring, provide things to climb or swing on, or to dig in. Provide some opportunity for privacy, with either a wall or perhaps a partial drape of the cage for him or her to use when they are feeling frightened or just not feeling social.
environment. Everybody has to eat, so use it as an Enriching opportunity: use food puzzles so they have to solve a problem to get the food. Scatter or hide food around the enclosure, bury it in a bucket of clean dirt or place it into a cloth bag which you then tie up. Give them whole fruit- like a pomegranate or pumpkin, or whole vegetables like a wet head of leaf lettuce, corn on the cob, peas in the shell or an entire broccoli tree. Freeze fruit in water/fruit juice on a hot day. Bake whole treats into corn bread. You get the idea, make it interesting!
NOVEL OBJECTS:
Swings, toys, balls, large and smaller, toys stuffed with a good quality peanut or almond butter. A tub of water, a non-toxic plant to shred, a child’s toy that speaks or makes a sound when manipulated. Use your creativity and imagination! Just remember: safety, safety, safety. Never leave your critter unsupervised with an unfamiliar toy, and unless it is specifically food, make sure the parts are too big to swallow. Use common sense and have fun!
TRAINING:
Interact with the animal- allow them to make a choice whether or not to participate in an activity. Training gives the critter a ‘job’ and allows the caregiver to observe the animal closely to gauge its health. Also, training builds trust, making the animal easier to handle for things like routine grooming or trips to the vet, and heaven forbid, in case of an emergency.
SOUND/SMELL:
Play music, play recorded calls of like and different animals in their natural state. Provide smells of prey animals, and predator animals as well.
“DaVinci”
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FOOD:
The big one! Most animals would be spending nearly all of their waking hours in the pursuit of food in their natural
Las Vegas Pet Scene Magazine • March/April 2014
“Tucson”
References: Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary / www.merriam-webster.com/; Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute nationalzoo.si.edu/SCBI/; The Shape of Enrichment www.enrichment.org